Quiet Confessions, Episode 13: Pocket Friends, Big Milestones, and Back-to-School Nerves

In this week’s Quiet Confessions, Chelsea reflects on the unexpected connections that have grown out of the podcast — friendships that started in DMs and have become daily lifelines. 

They share the gratitude and disbelief of reaching 100 episodes and closing in on 7,500 downloads, and introduce listeners to fellow Vermont parenting podcasters, Pondering Parenthood.

The episode then shifts to back-to-school season: the excitement and anxiety of sending their youngest to preschool, the changing routines, and the emotional ups and downs of a neurodivergent household navigating transitions. 

From pocket friends to podcast milestones to the bittersweet start of a new school year, this is a heartfelt mix of celebration, vulnerability, and connection.

Key Takeaways

• Unexpected connections can be life-changing: The podcast has led to deep, meaningful friendships with people from around the country and the world — proving connection doesn’t have to look a certain way to be real.
  
  
• Hitting 100 episodes is a huge milestone: Chelsea reflects on starting the show in a dark time and never imagining it would grow into a global community.
  
  
• Gratitude for every single listener: Nearing 7,500 downloads is a reminder that every listen matters and that the podcast has impact far beyond what Chelsea first imagined.
  
  
• Introducing new local voices: Fellow Vermont parenting podcasters Pondering Parenthood  Podcast bring fresh perspectives and will be guests on Quiet Connection in Season 6.
  
  
• Back-to-school season brings mixed emotions: Excitement for new beginnings is paired with anxiety about change, especially in a neurodivergent household where transitions take time.
  
  
• Separation anxiety is real for parents too: Past trauma and postpartum mental health challenges make school transitions particularly triggering — and therapy plays an important role in managing it.
  
  
• Anxiety means caring: Feeling nervous about change is a sign of deep investment in children’s well-being, not a flaw. 

Sound Bites

• “Connection doesn’t have to look a certain way to be real.”
  
  
• “I never imagined this little podcast would spark friendships across the world.”
  
  
• “Every single download means someone chose to spend their time here.”
  
  
• “Anxiety means I care — it means I want my girls to feel safe and supported.”
  
  
• “Sometimes back-to-school is equal parts pride, gratitude, anxiety, and chaos.”

Transcript

Chelsea Myers (00:42)
Hey, it's Friday Eve. It's Thursday, which means it is time for another quiet confession. 30 minutes or less straight from my brain to your The podcast has hit some big milestones recently, and I want to share them with you and talk a little bit about back to school. Some kiddos are already back at school. My kiddos

Don't go back for another week and a half, but holy wow. My anxiety has some thoughts about that. But first, I've been reflecting a lot lately about connection. That's kind of what I'm all about. Hence the name. But these connections are the ones that you don't necessarily always expect.

and maybe didn't even know you needed until they were right in front of you. Or me, in this case. This podcast, Quiet Connection, started as a little nugget of an idea when I was in the darkest moments of my life. It was intended to be a space for honest stories about postpartum mental health.

and all of the intricacies on the journey to and through parenting. I had absolutely no idea it would grow into what it is now. And I definitely didn't imagine the people I'd meet along the way, many of whom I call friends and carry in my pocket. And they've become like lifelines.

That sounds really weird saying I carry my friends in my pocket. They're, they're, they're on my phone. Okay. They're my pocket friends. They're on my phone. Yeah. I, when I started QC, I, I thought about the listeners as a collective. Again, not expecting to even have many listeners, but I just envisioned this group, no matter how big or small that I hoped.

might feel seen or comforted by the conversations that I was having with parents. What I definitely didn't expect were the individual connections, the private messages, the I've been there too's in my DMs, the small check-ins that turned into ongoing conversations. Some of those conversations turned into friendships that feel

literally like they've always been there. And some have even interconnected into group chats that I visit daily. ⁓ It literally blows my mind. they're my pocket friends. I keep saying it, but they're the people that I can literally talk to in the middle of a hard day. ⁓

We send each other reels or gifts that make us laugh. We celebrate small wins and we hold space for each other. And it humbles me. It really, really humbles me that something I made this little podcast could possibly be the thing that sparked such deep and genuine relationships that

people I've never met in person from all over the country and all over the world were rooting for each other in ways that feel really, really important. And that does not change the relationships that I have with my close to home friends. Those are some of the most meaningful relationships.

I've had who have seen me through some of my darkest moments, but like the people that I've met through Quiet Connection and that I've remained in contact with, every day it blows my mind just how lucky I am and how thankful I am. And it's a really good reminder that connection doesn't have to look a certain way to be real.

It doesn't have to be someone you see every week or someone you live near. It can be, but sometimes it's just knowing that there's someone out there who gets it. I don't know. It's, I still honestly can't believe it.

And speaking of things that humble me, Quiet Connection recently reached 100 episodes. 100 episodes, you guys. If you had told me at the very beginning of this whole thing that I'd be here saying this, I would have been like, yeah, right. Okay. know. I...

I struggle. I've always struggled with seeing anything I do, seeing it have an impact or seeing it as having value. don't know. It's a learned behavior. I'm working on it, guys. I'm working on it. But QC started as a catharsis, not just for me, especially not just for me, but for others out there feeling just as alone as I did.

but there's always been that nagging question. Could I make something that felt real in a world full of perfect little Instagram squares and shiny parenting moments and oh my gosh, Pinterest parties and ugh, could this passion project really make an impact? Well, huge surprise to me. Not only.

Have we hit 100 episodes, but we are less than 250 downloads away from 7,500 total downloads, which is absolutely mind blowing. I literally, can't, it's insane. That's thousands of listens. Thousands of moments where someone pressed play, chose to spend their time here.

and let me and my guests into their ears and maybe into their hearts a little. I don't know. I don't take that lightly, you guys. Every single listen matters to me. Every download means someone was curious enough to hit play. And if you've been here since the beginning, wow, those were, those were some rough cuts and I was still learning.

⁓ or if you just found us yesterday, I just, I just want to say thank you. Truly, truly, truly, truly. Thank you. And speaking of listens, I want to not so subtly encourage you to check out some fellow Vermont parenting podcasters that I have been connecting with. Their names are Mike and Megan, and they host pondering parenthood podcast.

They literally live like 25 minutes from me and we just found each other through podcasting in the last like month or two. They will be on QC in season six to share their story, but you should check them out before that. They already have, I think they have four episodes out currently. They talk about...

their own postpartum and parenting experiences. They have some really great perspective.

Mike shares his perspective as a dad who had postpartum depression. And Megan kind of weaves in there how she perceived those moments and like hold space for that while also talking about her experiences. It's great. ⁓ They also connect with

their own family and friends and share insights into their postpartum journeys and parenting journeys. They're just genuinely good people who I've loved being able to chat with and share podcasting tips that I've learned along the way. I don't know, it just feels good to have other voices in this.

in this realm, so check them out. Pondering Parenthood podcast, I'll link them in the show notes. But now I'm gonna jump tracks like I'm really good at from one subject to something completely different and talk about back to school season. ⁓ If you know me at all, you know I have feelings about transitions and change. ⁓

And this year, we've got a big one. You guys, my youngest is starting preschool. ⁓ my oldest is going into fourth grade and my youngest is starting preschool. Part of me is really excited for her. She's going to the same preschool that her big sister went to. I absolutely love the program. I love the teacher. I'm excited. I know.

I know, I know she is going to show up like a boss on day one. That's just who she is. And then I know all the little things like she's going to meet new friends and learn new things and come home with art projects that will mysteriously end up in the recycling bin when no one's paying attention. Don't worry, I save some. I have a book that I keep them in. But.

there's another part of me that's pretty anxious. Preschool means new routines, new people, a new level of independence for her that I'm proud of and again, also nervous about. And it's another shift in our family's rhythm. And for a neuro sparkly household like ours, shifts take time to really...

settle and start to feel comfortable. And it's not just about her. It's about me too. I'm already anticipating how quiet the house is going to be when she's gone. It's only for a couple of hours, two days a week, but I don't know, it's this weird mix of like relief and loneliness and constantly wondering if she's okay and what she's doing.

I do the same thing with her older sister. Like what's happening at school right now? Not to mention my own separation anxiety and I'm owning up to that a hundred percent. I have such deep trauma when it comes to being away from either of my kids, but missing the first six plus months of my youngest's life because of

my postpartum hemorrhage and my ⁓ PMADS that had me hospitalized. And then, yeah, all of it left a really, really big hole in me that I'm still trying to figure out how to patch And then with, yeah, just being away from my kids for extended periods of time, it's very, triggering. I'm going to figure it out. I see a therapist, you guys.

But then you add in like all the other back to school chaos of my oldest. mean, she's in the routine. She's excited. She's got the same teacher this year that she had last year, which we weren't sure was going to happen. so that's good, but like schedules are different. The room is different. There's all kinds of emotional ups and downs that we're dealing with. Puberty is knocking at the door. It has been for a while and we've been saying, Hey,

We're not home. It's a lot, but I keep reminding myself that anxiety means that I care, right? It means I want my girls to feel safe and supported always. And I don't think that's a bad thing. So yeah, that's where I'm at right now. There were, I don't know if those things were all like,

connected, but we got here, right? ⁓ I'm feeling grateful for my pocket friends who hold me up, for my local friends who also have my back always. I'm mind blown and still in disbelief by these milestones that the podcast has reached. ⁓

My imposter syndrome, I think, is just something that I will always have. But I'm also really pumped about new podcasting buddies that are local and, and yeah, and a little tangled up in back to school nerves. So if you're feeling any of this, a mix of pride, gratitude, anxiety, chaos.

Whatever it's about, anything, school, work, parenting, your relationship, literally anything, you're not alone. You never are. And to every single person who's listened, messaged, emailed, shared their story, or just hit play and put your headphones in, thank you so much. You have been part of something I never dreamed.

that I would be a part of, let alone help create. So here's to the next hundred episodes, to the next, this feels crazy, but the next 7,500 downloads. And most importantly, the connections, big and small, because that's what this is about. And that's what makes all of this worth it. So thanks for hanging out with me and I'll catch you next week.